1. Field of the invention
The invention relates to a cable storage reel for coiling or uncoiling a wire, cable or other threadlike materials.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,390,142 discloses a cable storage reel. This known reel comprises two cap-shaped housing parts with a central coiling element therein. The housing parts interconnect while forming a coiling space around the central coiling element. The central coiling element comprises a rotatable disc. The rotatable disc itself has a slot for gripping a part of a wire. The assembly of the two housing parts is at its perimetrical side provided with a slit through which a wire loop can be inserted into the housing, which wire loop then needs to be put into the slot in the rotatable disc. By subsequently rotating the disc relative to the housing, for the purpose of which the disc is operable from outside the housing, the wire is pulled further into the housing and coiled around the central coiling element. It is noted that the two housing parts according to U.S. Pat. No. 4,390,142 can be rotated relative to each other. This relative rotation, however, is limited to a maximum of 180.degree., because each housing part has cooperating means for limiting the relative rotation therebetween. The purpose of this limited relative rotation is that the ends of a coiled wire part can be brought in line with each other, so that it appears that the wire goes in on one side of the device and comes out diametrically on the other side of the device.
Another device for coiling a wire is known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,084,886. This device also comprises two cap-shaped housing parts defining a coiling space around a central coiling element, in which space a rotatable disc is placed similarly to the mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,390,142. The disc comprising the slot in this device, however, is spring tensioned by means of a rubber band extending inside the central coiling element. By releasing the disc so that it can rotate freely under the influence of the tensioned rubber band a wire can be coiled around the central coiling element. The two housing parts according to U.S. Pat. No. 3,084,886 can not be rotated relative to each other.
A disadvantage of these known devices is that they comprise many complex components. Furthermore, the many components of the devices are difficult to assemble and disassemble, and relatively expensive to make. Also the wire loop has to pass through both the slit in the housing and the slot in the disc, which slit and slot therefore need to be aligned with each other before the wire loop can be inserted. Therefore, a coiling operation with the known devices is a complex and time-consuming operation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,798 relates to a cord and line storage reel mainly comprising two shell-like housing parts, rotatably connected to one another. The first housing part comprises a hollow hub member adapted to mate with a solid hub member of the second housing part. The first housing part has one slot aperture disposed across the full diameter of the first housing part. The second housing part comprises two slot apertures at both sides of the solid core hub member. For the purpose of coiling a part of a wire the slot apertures in the two housing parts are to be brought into alignment with one another, after which a part of a wire can be laid down into the slot apertures and hung like a loop over the solid hub member. When subsequently the two housing parts are rotated in opposite directions the wire part is pulled into the housing and wound around the hub members. It is noted that according to U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,798 the axial dimension of the coiling space is only as thick as the diameter of the cord or line to be coiled.
A disadvantage with this known cord and line storage reel is that particularly the first housing part becomes very fragile because of the slot aperture disposed across its full diameter and in particular crossing the central hollow hub member.
A further disadvantage of all the above-mentioned known devices is that, as the wire is initially wound upon the reel, the wire in at least one place goes through a very tight deflection and can kink.